Why Should a Hairdresser Gat an Increase in Salary? Essay

It is understandable that employees will request wage increases, especially when a significant amount of time has passed since salary was last negotiated. It is also understandable that business owners, especially owners of smaller business such as hair salons, will want to control their costs, with wages being one of the main operating outlays. This document is a request for a pay rise, demonstrating how and why a pay rise is both deserved and necessary.

A hair saloon sells a service; the cutting and styling of hair. However, customers do not simply buy the material aspect of the service; they are buying the experience of having their hair done and the physiological satisfaction associated with the service and the way they feel afterwards. Quality of service is wholly reliant on the skills of the staff looking after them, not only the ability to do hair, but the ability of the hairdresser to make the client feel comfortable and welcome. It is this feeling of satisfaction that will ensure customers keep coming back, and a hairdresser relies on repeat business. Providing this type of service has been the cornerstone of my work ethic; excellent hairdressing skills accompanied by the social skills and attention to detail which makes every customer feel special. This attention to detail has resulted in my services adding value to the business; I have a very high level of repeat customers, and also gain new customers due to positive word of moth and good reviews of my work on social media sites. This all adds value to the hair saloon, helping to ensure that there is a good reputation and adding to that reputation as well as generating more business which is creating direct value for the firm and its owners.

From the perspective of an employer the provision of good service using excellent hairdressing and customer skills may be seen as simply part of the job description; it may have been a reason why an individual is hired, and why they are maintained in a position. From an employers perspective it may be argued that simply doing ones job is not sufficient reason to grant a pay increase. In addition, many of the aspects of the service that help the customer feel comfortable and wish to return are not only down to the hairdresser; the saloon owner has to provide a comfortable and inviting environment and make sure the atmosphere is conducive to the business. This all takes investment and constant attention.

The arguments of the employer are correct; the feeling and value of service is related to the overall experience. However, while employees are paid for providing a service and doing a job not all employees are able to offer the service at the same level of excellence. Just as one would expect to pay more for a four star meal in a restaurant compared to a fast food take away, customers expect to pay more for the more experienced and qualified hairdressers compared to the trainees. Likewise, it is reasonable to pay the best employees more than the poorer employers; they add more value and are often more productive. Indeed, if a good employee feels they are being undervalued, this may undermine motivation and result in lower levels of effort and productivity due to the feeling of inequity. Conversely, strategies that demonstrate the employer appreciates the work and performance of the employee, such as pay rises, will help to support a good employment relationship, and in turn support high levels of motivation and productivity. Therefore, an employee that is adding value in excess of that added by the 'average' employees, they deserve to be recognized and rewarded for their achievements.

The need for a pay rise in terms of the general environmental changes can also be considered. The current pay rate has been in place for some time; but as time goes by inflation pushes up the cost of goods and the cost of living. Rises prices erode the real value of money; a wage that was negotiated a year ago will not buy the same amount of goods, or pay for the same level of service today as it would have obtained twelve months ago. The issue of a wage rise needed to maintain the real value of money is important not only as a theoretical or ethical issue, it is very important for an employees' quality of life. If the cost of goods and services needed is increasing, and the real value of the wage is decreasing it means that the employee will need to look at what they can afford, and what may be becoming unaffordable. If an employee is at a very senior level in an organization where they have a very high wage, the failure to gain a wage rise is unlikely to have a great impact as they may have a high level of disposable income and undertake a high level of discretionary spending, However, for a hairdresser working 8 hours a day, the wage level is not high to start with, and the failure to gain a wage increase can have a significant impact. This impact is then magnified when the failure to gain an increase will impact not only on the employee, but also their family, where children may suffer as a result of wages failing to keep pace with inflation.

Therefore, it may be argued that simply to ensure the wages of an employee remain at the same level it terms of overall value, pay rises should be given on a regular, usually annual basis. Failure to grant rises that at least match the increase in the cost of living results in the equivalent of pay cut. This can also be seen as an ethical issue; how ethical is it for an employee to allow employees to duffer as a result of inflation? The concept is well-known, and it may be argued it is well recognized, as wage rises linked to inflation will often form part of a collective wage negotiation with larger employers, and is frequently seen in public sector jobs.

The perspective of employers also needs to be considered. Employees see a decrease in terms of their wages as a result of inflation, it may also be argued that employers also suffer from the same issue; the costs associated with business are also increasing. The cost of hair dressing and salon supplies has risen over the last year, and it is also likely that other overhead costs such as insurance have increased. With the difficult economic situation in the country at the current time, and the recovery from the recession still taking time be fully felt by businesses, it is also understandable that many business owners have not been able to pass on all of the increasing of costs to the customers. Wages may be seen as one area that there is the potential to constrain costs, especially if there are no pay rises written into the contract. It may also be one of the easiest areas to constrain costs; after all one cannot call a utility company and try and negotiation a different rate for electricity, and if costs are not sufficiently controlled, the business may not survive and then there would be no job with any wage for an employee.

With costs increasing for the employer and the inability to pass on all the costs to the customers there may be some grounds to argue the employer to restrain wage rises. However, in the case of the hair saloon, while costs have increased, there have also been some increases in prices, so at least some of the costs have been assed onto the customers. In addition, while the price rises have been constrained, there has been a significant…
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